New RIT lab will study how geo games can impact society

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A new research lab at Rochester Institute of Technology will focus on creating enhancements for location-based games while also working to understand players and how play impacts local and global cultures.

The Niantic x RIT Geo Games and Media Research Lab, created through a $400,000 donation by Niantic, will provide researchers with the opportunity to learn how people interact with location-based games and how the activity can be used for good.

Also known as geo games, location-based games incorporate ordinary elements of the world into the play experience. They’re generally played in the real world and are dependent not only on the digital screen but also the player’s location in a park, building or city setting.

“There has been limited research in location-based games, yet numerous studies show how Niantic games get people to walk more,” Konstantinos Papangelis, assistant professor in RIT’s School of Interactive Games and Media, said in a news release. “We want to learn the whole story about how these games affect human beings, how they help, why they do these things, and their potential for changing the world.”

Niantic has created geo games such as Pokémon Go, Igress and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite.

“Since 2012, we’ve heard from our Niantic explorer community about the positive impact our games have had on their lives — be it on their physical or mental well-being,” Archit Bhargava, director of Worldwide Product Marketing at Niantic, said. “In addition, our style of location-based games has played a tremendous role in building player communities, thereby fostering real-world human connection.”

Niantic’s funding also will fund scholarships for three students. The lab is committed to representing a diverse student community, with special consideration given to underrepresented groups.

“Minorities are severely underrepresented in computing academia and in the professional games industry, said Papangelis, who will head the lab. “It is so important that we have people with different opinions and perspectives creating and shaping these technologies.”

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